Comfort Keepers Davie

EP #16: Goals as Catalysts for Senior Growth

• Kristi Gurule

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Seniors have just as much to gain from goal setting as anyone else, and in this episode, we promise to shatter the misconception that older adults no longer need goals. Discover how setting and pursuing goals can keep the mind sharp, enhance mental health, and bring joy and excitement to everyday life. We share inspiring stories, like that of a client who rekindled her passion for painting, showing the profound personal growth that can come from even the smallest objectives. From combating loneliness to boosting self-esteem, we're diving into why goal setting is a vital practice at any age.

Join us on this journey of empowerment, where we unravel how goals can provide purpose, stave off boredom, and combat burnout. We emphasize the crucial role of family members and caregivers as supportive allies, helping seniors stay motivated and inspired. With practical tips on writing and prioritizing goals, as well as tapping into local resources, we hope to guide listeners towards a more fulfilling life. Listen in to hear about the rewarding moments when seniors not only reach their goals but also exceed them, leaving limitations in the dust and embracing new possibilities.

Please visit our website for more information: https://www.comfortkeepers.com/offices/florida/davie/

Speaker 1:

Welcome to the Comfort Keepers Davy podcast, where we elevate the human spirit. Here's your host, Christy Groulet. Hello everyone, I'm not your actual host, that's Christy, but I'm your co-host, Jeremy Wolf, as always here for the party. Christy, always a pleasure to see you.

Speaker 2:

Good to see you too, Jeremy.

Speaker 1:

Almost Christmas Nice to see you too, jeremy, almost Christmas Ooh, got the tree in the background. Still got to get gifts for the kids, but we got a little bit of time left because most people work hard their whole life to get to retirement so they don't have to deal with goal setting and they could just relax and travel and whatever it is. But you got me thinking about how important it is for a host of reasons. I'll let you get into some of that. But first off, what inspired you in the first place to do the article on goal setting for seniors?

Speaker 2:

It's really based on what you just said. You just listed things that are goals for people, so I feel that people should be making goals, especially as we get around to the holidays and the new year up and coming. It's just the time where people do want to sit down and think about what do they want this next year to look like, and truly goals can be any time of the year. It's just the time where you and I both know that everybody is thinking, whether they're writing them down or not, what are we going to do differently in the year 2025? So I thought it was fitting.

Speaker 1:

Tis the season as they say. It was fitting Tis the season, as they say. But why do you think, aside from what I just said, why do you think goals? They're often overlooked for seniors, again aside from the fact that you get older.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, because that really is. It needs to be debunked that you've reached a certain level in your life, right, You've maxed out of all the levels and you can't go anywhere else. And now you're not going to have any goals because you get to just there's always a new level.

Speaker 1:

Christy Right, you never maxed out.

Speaker 2:

Everybody should have something to look forward to. And having a goal keeps your mind sharp, it gives you something to look forward to and it just keeps you engaged. I really want to debunk the entire premise of seniors not having goals, because, truly, when you don't have a goal, what are you doing? Nothing.

Speaker 1:

Kind of just coasting by, but I wanted to dig in a little further because we talked on a previous episode a lot about mental health and I think this ties into that and you alluded to it just now when you were talking about from a mental aspect. What are some of the advantages, would you say, for seniors in setting goals to help with their mental health, their loneliness, their self-esteem? Start there, and then do you maybe have any examples of some of your clients who, when you met them, weren't doing this and you worked with them and it helped change their life in a positive direction?

Speaker 2:

Yes, okay, so let me just take it from there. So seniors who are not setting goals are typically more withdrawn, right, we're talking about the mental health aspect of everything. There's not something that they're looking forward to. A goal usually means that you're going to have some kind of structure in your life. It also means that more than more often than not, you're not having a goal, where it's set just by yourself and it does involve other people, so you have something that you're looking forward to.

Speaker 2:

I know personally that if I have a goal and I am reaching these little benchmarks as I get closer and closer to my goal, that I'm proud of myself. And so when somebody has a goal, no matter the size, it does not have to be a large goal. It could be getting up earlier in the morning to enjoy the sunrise, it could be something so simple. But when you work towards the goal, you have a sense of satisfaction, confidence booster, and everybody, no matter the age, their age, should be able to enjoy that. That's a huge thing. Age should be able to enjoy that that's a huge thing.

Speaker 2:

I think that one of the one of my most exciting clients that I've seen this come to truly was somebody that was very much a homebody, somebody that did not feel that since COVID, that they wanted to leave their home. They wanted to stay in their home, have things delivered. They didn't like to have people in their home. Here we are Hello, I'm Christie and I I'm gonna be your new friend. And when we talk about goal setting, we push boundaries a little bit. We push them for the greater good. And this individual used to have a huge passion for painting, used to love painting when they were younger, but they worked a corporate job their entire life. They retired and then they just they never got back into a paint studio. They don't have a paint studio. So we got them set up with a local group that meets at a community center, and now this person, who started off just going once a month to a painting class with her caregiver, fell in love with it, so much that now she's instructing it.

Speaker 1:

That's wonderful.

Speaker 2:

The worst like exciting story, but my point is that when you have a goal and it's to get out of your home that was her goal. That was her goal is to have confidence to leave her home.

Speaker 1:

Blossoms into so many wonderful things. Yeah, we could have been doing anything and opportunity presented itself.

Speaker 2:

She fell in love with something again, and now she's sharing that love with so many more people. It became something so much more. People who want to have a certain amount of steps in a day that's a goal. Somebody who wants to eat healthier that's a goal. Somebody who wants to just maintain regular doctor's appointments that's taking pride in their health that is a goal. Don't cancel the appointment.

Speaker 2:

So it doesn't have to be something where I'm now going to have this Picasso piece of art that I want to share with the world. It doesn't have to be that it can be something. It has to be something that you're going to take pride in and that you're going to put time into, because it makes you feel better at the end of the day.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely. That's a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing so many of us live our lives without tapping into our true potential and what brings us joy and, like you just mentioned it, creating these routines, these habits and setting goals and just incremental steps when things sometimes can seem impossible, breaking it down and just implementing small things every day, giving yourself credit when credit's due and not going too hard on yourself but continue to improve and acknowledge when you do well. These are all the things that lead to happiness. For sure you mentioned, you went through the gamut you talked about, like personal development, health, social Of these different types of goals. What do you, which of these do you, find most impactful for seniors? If you're talking to a client that, again, is not in the habit of setting goals, are there any that resonate more than others? Something simple like do you have a go-to thing that you typically do when you meet a client and you try to talk about goal setting?

Speaker 2:

Oh, that's a loaded question.

Speaker 1:

I have lots of loaded questions.

Speaker 2:

I know, but it's so upon that person and their physical ability. There's a lot of things that go into that, but what I would say is is, if a person is physically capable, I think one of the best goals is just to get somebody to be up and more active in their own care. So let's talk about walking. Let's talk about getting out of our love seat and watching our shows on repeat. Let's talk about walking around the neighborhood or going in and seeing something that they've never seen before a local park. To go and sit there and not sit in the living room. I think that the moment somebody can leave the comforts of their home and be in nature is so important. There is something about just being surrounded by nature that just does something for everybody's soul, and I know that's a little deep, but it's so true. So getting somebody out of their home would be my first goal. If somebody is not capable of leaving their home, then that's fine.

Speaker 2:

I think that at that point we would be looking at what is it that we are capable of doing, because that's the one thing that we never want to have happen is based on somebody's physical limitations, for them to be limited mentally, emotionally, in any capacity whatsoever.

Speaker 2:

Perhaps if somebody is bound to a bed or in a chair that they are in, that perhaps we can move that device, we can move that to a different setting. Maybe our goal is that we are working on other parts of the body for strength. Maybe our goal is to make something that maybe wasn't as movable more movable. Now I'm thinking of someone just came to my mind, somebody that we wanted to be able to do something, but she had a really hard time with her hands, and so our caregivers got really creative with truly fabricating their own little utensils to be able to help this lady crochet, but she couldn't handle just a normal crochet hook. So anyway, my point in saying this is that you can get as creative as you want, but truly look at it from the standpoint of what is in the best interest of this individual. What is going to bring them joy and elevate their spirit? What are they going to look forward to doing? Because the moment it feels like a task, you're going to lose all interest in it.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, 100%, and this is your passion, what you do at Comfort Keepers. But I'm curious at what stage in the relationship and obviously it's different for different clients but I'd imagine that you don't just go in on your first day meeting with somebody like, all right, let's talk about goals, because that's something you hear that what do you mean? Goals? Do you slowly introduce that to clients? Walk us through what that looks like when you're working with seniors, as far as how you bring these topics to light and get them actually motivated to do it, because it's one thing to talk about it, as we know, it's another thing altogether to start implementing these things in your day-to-day life. How do you go about that process, christy?

Speaker 2:

Okay, jeremy, I go about it by saying hey, I'm Christy, I'm signing you up for services today. I want you to take part in your own care planning and I want to know what your goals are. So actually, we do From the very beginning we start talking about.

Speaker 1:

You set the stage right.

Speaker 2:

We set the stage. Yes, because it's so important. I don't want to be somebody that is telling somebody what their goals for themselves should be. We want them to have an active role in everything that they're receiving, the care that they're receiving in their home, and you know what? There are so many people who are so surprised by even being asked the question what are your goals? Because they don't think about it. What do you mean? I should have goals? Well, let's just talk about it.

Speaker 2:

And this is another reason why we do this and we explain this entire process in the comfort of someone's home when we're talking about it, because it's a very personal journey for each person, individual who's going to be coming alongside and coming into your home to help you. We want them to have an interest in the goals that you have for yourself, because how awesome would it be if your goal is to get back into art, pottery, something along that artistic line that I have somebody who's also passionate about those things. You're going to be that much more excited about that goal. Or you want to eat healthier? Then I'm going to find somebody that is a great cook, that knows the different types of diet and not just bland. Here we go. We've got something boring to eat. So all of these all come back to what's in the best interest of the person that we're working with.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, we've talked about this before. You guys really do a phenomenal job of doing just that really learning about the client and tailoring a solution to meet their needs, which is incredible. What are some of the common challenges or barriers that seniors typically face when trying to achieve their goals, and how can caregivers from your experience talking to family members that are giving care outside the help of a company like yours? What can they do to overcome them?

Speaker 2:

Some of the challenges might just even be logistic. If they're wanting to be more active in where they live, they don't have the ability to do that in their home. They want to get to place A, b or C and they don't have the ability to do that in their home. They want to get to place a, b or c and they don't have the ability to get there. That could be just a logistic challenge, and so having a caregiver whether us or a family member really become a partner in helping them achieve their goal because there's nothing more devastating than really being excited to want to try something for their best to better them and then they can't get there or they can't get to whatever it is that they're doing. I also think, too, we find ourselves in these seasons of we're really excited, we get burnout or we get bored. I think about that. Maybe I'm projecting, but I'm just thinking that when we have a goal.

Speaker 1:

Sometimes you mean. You mean you're a human being yeah yeah, welcome to the party thank you.

Speaker 2:

We get bored with the goals that we have in place and so sometimes we need to spice it up a little bit. Sometimes, what we've been doing and what we're doing everything right and we're getting our goal, maybe we've already hit our goal. I think that's another thing. What if our goal is to eat better? We've been eating better for a whole month and now we're like over it.

Speaker 2:

Okay, our caregiver, family member or not coming alongside and saying how can we do this exact same thing, but let's change it a little bit, sometimes adding a new little element. Or hey, you've succeeded and you've learned how to play pickleball. Why don't we go learn how to play this? I'm just saying there's so many different things that we can do. It's just proactively thinking. Let's talk about that now. Let's start talking about it. Are we wanting to then get into some other physical activity? Are you wanting to do water aerobics at that point, or vice versa? Whatever it is, that's all a part of how we lay the foundation. It's not just going to be from the beginning Okay, what are your goals? And we will never talk about them again.

Speaker 1:

That is not how we roll. It's an ever evolving process. Yes, it, yes.

Speaker 2:

And it's based on the season that somebody's in or maybe they're not as excited about what they thought that they'd be super excited about. Let's not get discouraged. Let's just pivot. Let's pivot and do something different.

Speaker 1:

So in the article you talked about finding joy in the journey right, and you alluded to this earlier for yourself. In terms of when you achieve these small milestones, you get like a little rush of dopamine. It feels journey right, and you alluded to this earlier for yourself. In terms of when you achieve these small milestones, you get like a little rush of dopamine. It feels good, right, the feel good. Chemicals come in. So how does small everyday goals contribute to a richer, more fulfilling life for seniors and clients?

Speaker 2:

you've seen Having purpose, a senior feeling like they have purpose even now, right.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, cause it could be difficult. When you get older, you feel like, oh, my time's getting close to being done, I've done what I do and you can get depressed without having purpose.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, yes, that's exactly it. So being able to celebrate what it is that you're doing now, today, in the here and now, it's huge for your mental health, but ultimately that trickles down into every other aspect of your life. So that's what leads to a more fulfilling life for the rest of your life, no matter what you're doing.

Speaker 1:

Love it. What's the biggest lesson families or caregivers can take away from this?

Speaker 2:

the idea of goal setting for seniors take away from this the idea of goal setting for seniors. Don't limit them. Don't tell them no, truly. First of all, they won't accept. No, I'll just be honest about that. There's a whole generational thing there. But don't limit people. If they have a goal, then help them part. Be their biggest cheerleader, their biggest advocate, to help them make and reach that goal, because they should. They deserve to be able to work toward whatever that is, how small or how big and don't be the limiting factor in their life, letting them know that they're already defeated before they've even started. Don't do that.

Speaker 1:

Love it.

Speaker 2:

I'm pretty passionate about that.

Speaker 1:

Yes, you are All right. Some final thoughts here before we wrap up. I'll hit you with two more questions I have for you, if a senior or a family member listening to this today wanted to start this process right. Forget about comfort keepers right, they're not working with you, it's just the senior listening to it or the family member. What's the first piece of advice that you'd give them?

Speaker 2:

I feel like the first piece of advice for goal setting would be to write down something.

Speaker 1:

Write, down what are out of your head that you have onto the paper.

Speaker 2:

Yep, exactly that's the first step. You got to visualize, you got to see it come to life. Right, there's a whole psychology behind that but once you have it written down, then why don't you prioritize what those goals are? It's great to have multiple goals, but what's the most important? Don't want to feel inundated by taking on too much all at once, because this goal might take longer than you expect, and that's okay. That's where you're going to give yourself grace.

Speaker 1:

Look if it's anything worthwhile, though it's going to take time.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, absolutely. If you master it overnight, then let's make a new list. Anyway after you've got your list and you know what you're going to do, I think my next thing would be look at your resources. Look at what's already out there in your neighborhood or nearby that you're not aware of, and that's where I Google. Google is my best friend when it comes to looking up what's near me that can help me make reach this goal, or what other resources are there.

Speaker 1:

Last question, then we'll wrap this up For you, christy what's the most rewarding part for helping your clients and seniors achieve their goals through the work you do at Comfort Keepers?

Speaker 2:

I don't know if you know this about me, but I'm a very excitable person. I'm very excited for people.

Speaker 1:

Oh really, you don't say, I really do.

Speaker 2:

There is nothing. There is nothing more rewarding than going from a person who is so anxious or worried about meeting a milestone and then seeing them completely blow it out of the water, out of the park. There is nothing more exciting than being able to turn right back around and say I believed in you from the very beginning. I knew you could do it. There is such a great satisfaction, almost feeling like I've reached the goal myself. That is how everybody on my entire team feels how passionate we are and making sure that, whatever this goal is, it may seem like something very simple to one of us, but it's not our goal, it's their goal. We live for the excitement of reaching goals.

Speaker 1:

Love it. I think that's a perfect place to end, Christy, unless you had anything else to add, but I think you covered it all inside and out.

Speaker 2:

Yes, yes. I just hope that people feel inspired really to go out and do it, just do the thing.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, absolutely All right, everyone. Thank you so much for tuning in, as always. If you like this content, please subscribe, leave some comments. Let us know what resonated with you, what maybe didn't. If you have any other topics that you'd like us to address, please drop those in the comments below. There'll be a link down there and we will look forward to seeing everyone again on the next episode of the Comfort Keepers Davy podcast. Everyone, take care and have a blessed day. Thank you for listening to the Comfort Keepers Davy podcast. For more information, visit comfortkeeperscom or call 954-947-7954.